So it's been a while since my last blog post. Sorry. I guess I've been pretty busy over the last couple of months getting settled in Houston and at school. Thank God, it's going very well so far. The kids are happy. The house is great. The people are nice. And the work is interesting.
Over the summer, work was all about getting settled, meeting people, learning how everything works, and getting everything ready for the start of school. Last week we had teacher meetings and then, on Thursday, the 1st day of school. I thought I had been working hard all summer, but once the teachers, students, and parents arrived that's when things really started getting busy. I feel like I am going around from one person to the next solving problems. And they're all legitimate requests. It's just that as soon as one thing is crossed off my list three more pop up.
One friend of mine said it sounds like being a fireman who constantly has to put out flames before they develop into fires. I prefer to think of it like juggling, though, because not only are there many things to manage at once. But even after you deal with something there is often a follow up required to make sure the plan is working.
In a certain sense the job so far reminds me of one of my childhood favorites, Caps For Sale. Like the salesman in the story, I wear many different hats at school. If I would start listing the various tasks I have been involved in for the school so far this would be a very long blog post. It's good because it keeps things interesting. But it makes for a very broad job description.
It's also like that story because, like any good salesman, I have to stick with the message even on the days that the sales are slow, and I have to stay composed even on the occasions that the customers are challenging. In fact, one of the main lessons of that story is that others tend to react to us based on our own behavior. So I have been trying to set an example of dedication, excitement, friendliness, calm, and teamwork.
Overall, I am enjoying the job so far and am learning a lot. I work with some amazing people and though the hours are long and the tasks keep growing, I come home each day with a smile on my face and drive to work each morning eager to see which caps I will be wearing that day.
